Some thoughts on this power outage, general observations of people, and some lessons learned through personal experience or observation.
Traffic – Traffic was bad as all traffic lights were out. This caused backups, multiple crashes, and vehicles to overheat as people sat in traffic with their A/C on.
Lesson Learned – Develop alternate pathways home avoiding as many choke points (large intersections) as possible.
Gas – Many people run their cars next to empty before refilling. Many cars ran out of gas or were abandoned due to a lack of electricity at the gas stations. Long lines of cars at the gas station but with no way to fill up were present at many locations.
Lesson Learned -The practice of treating half empty as empty and then filling up was useful as I was able to get home without issue. Have stores of gas at home as you may need to evacuate further. Also have other fuels such as kerosene, propane, or white gas as necessary.
Money – No power = no credit card use. The reality is most stores cannot operate without power as the cashiers are too ignorant to calculate what to charge and most stores do not have a “knuckle buster” credit card slip machine so that you cannot charge supplies.
Lesson Learned – Carry cash in small bills on you at all times. Some places may have back up power and will be able to sell items for cash. Have some more cash at home in small denominations 1’s, 5’s, 10’s, and 20’s nothing larger than $20. $500-1000 in cash reserves is warranted for extended periods.
Get Home Bag – If road become impassable and you are forced to get home on foot then having a bag with good walking shoes, jacket, food, water, flash light and some sort of personal protection is advisable.
Lesson Learned – Have enough supplies for the people that commonly ride in your vehicle such as family members and/or small children. This includes shoes, food, and any specialized needs that they may have. Also if you are on medication make sure you have some with you at all times so that you can make it home.
Water – We live in a semi arid to an arid environment.
Lesson Learned – Have enough water on hand to get through for 3-7 days. One gallon per person per day is a minimum.
Food – Stores will be closed or stripped quickly. Have enough dry/canned food for 3-7 days minimum.
Lesson Learned – Be able to prepare your food or have food available that can be eaten cold or dry. For small children have powdered milk available as this can be a food source for toddlers that have not transitioned to solid foods.
Weapons – Have them. Feed them.
Lesson Learned – Have weapons ready for use, not broken down or stored away but ready to rock and roll at a moment’s notice as that is all you may have. Have at least 4 magazines loaded and with each weapon. Do not fumble around looking for the magazine for this gun or that. Have plenty of ammunition for each weapon and a weapon light. Having a 9mm handgun and no ammo means you have an expensive rock to defend yourself with.
Electricity/lighting- Having electricity quickly becomes a necessity.
Lesson Learned – Have plenty of flash lights and batteries to back them up with. Also have alternative lighting solutions such as lanterns, candles available for use. Know the safety precautions for each and have plenty of fuel available for them. Have matches available also to light
Having a solar backup or generator is a necessity to keep refrigerated and frozen foods safe. Severely limit the amount of times that you access your fridge or freezer to prolong spoilage. If you have a gas generator use it sparingly and if possible have a dual fuel conversion so that it can run off of propane or natural gas. During extended power outages and emergencies lighting and generator noises announcing to everyone what you have and what they are sorely lacking. Be safe.
Communication – Communication is key to safety and knowing the situation.
Lesson Learned – Touch base with family members and your neighbors. Land lines may be operable so have a phone that is push button or rotary. Cox users with their phone bundled may not have service as their phone is over the internet.
Cell phone use may be spotty at best. Texting seems to go through much easier than calls so be familiar with texting or get a blackberry/I phone.
TV stations may be off line but radio is available at 600 or 760 for the San Diego area. Have a hand crank emergency radio available. These have lighting, radio (AM/FM), TV reception. They can also recharge your cell phone if you have no other way of getting power.
Get to know somebody in government that has a GETS access number. This gets them priority on the cell phone system.
In short this little exercise should have served as a wakeup call for those who were (still are) sleeping or to tighten up preparations for future catastrophic events. Some general observations were the amount of car crashes in a ten mile stretch of freeway. Traffic lights did not work so using alternative paths home was helpful but still slow (be patent getting home). People got nervous real quick and found out they did not have cash on hand or that the stores that were open were not accepting credit cards. People cleared out stores of certain foods, water, flash lights, batteries, and gas if they could get it. Many people did not have enough gas to get home or they got home on fumes. Some cars were abandoned.
Overall, people got nervous really quick as they were not prepared and systems such as water, sewer, and emergency services shutdown or were overwhelmed quickly. This goes to show how fragile our society is and how woefully unprepared people are. This is just a short list of things that were noted but one must act now for the next time. Either you make do with what you have or do